My Adventures as a Spy eBook

Hastily I packed my bag, and the good officer endeavoured
to help me, packing up anything he could see in the
room and thrusting it in with my things. Unfortunately
he kept packing my brother’s things in as well,
and so when his back was turned I thrust them back
into my brother’s bed, for I did not want it
known he was about there too.

Having finally filled my portmanteau, my next care
was to leave a warning lest he too should be entrapped.
So while ostensibly paying the bill to the landlord
of the house, who had been called up by the police,
I wrote a warning note on a scrap of paper, which I
jammed on the candle, where my brother could not fail
to find it when he came home later on, and then I
went off to the station, and was taken back to the
capital by a Hussar officer of congenial temperament.

With all good feeling and the true hospitality of
his kind, he insisted on buying half a dozen bottles
of beer for my consumption—­since I was
an Englishman—­and he helped me with the
ordeal during the small hours of the morning.

On reaching the capital I was put into a hotel, my
passport taken from me, and I was told that I should
be expected to remain there until called for.
In the meantime I might go about the city, but was
not to take myself away without permission. I
very soon found that I was being watched by a detective
told off for the purpose, and then it was that I made
the acquaintance of a foreign spy who was acting as
waiter in the hotel. He was so well informed
on higher politics, as well as on military matters,
that I guessed he must be an officer of the intelligence
staff, and he was most helpful and kind to me in my
predicament.

He pointed out to me who were the detectives in the
hotel staff, and informed me that their duty was merely
to watch me, to ascertain what my moves were day by
day, and to report them by telephone to the head police
office. He advised me before going out each day
to inform the hall porter, thereby letting the detectives
overhear what were my plans; they would then telephone
to the police, who would have their own detectives
watching me while I was out.

THE ESCAPE.

Within a short time my brother rejoined me from the
manoeuvre area, but by doing so he at once came under
observation and under suspicion, and we were practically
a pair of prisoners. So much was this the case
that a few days later we received a visit at daybreak
one morning, from a friend in power, who was also
in touch with the police, and he advised us that the
best course we could take was to escape from the country
while it was possible, he undertaking quietly to make
arrangements for us. The idea was that we should
slip away to a seaport, where we could get on to a
British steamer as two of the crew and so pass out
of the country.

That was the scheme. But the difficulty was how
to play it off. A ship was found whose captain
was willing to receive us provided that we could get
to him without being observed. With the aid of
our friendly waiter, we let the detective at the hotel
understand that we were tired of being under suspicion,
and that we were boldly going to take the train and
leave the country.